Editor, The Times:
When one watches the posturing of Stephen Harper in Poland and the Ukraine, one has to wonder, who is fooling who?
The opposition of Barack Obama and Angela Merkel to Putin's moves in the Ukraine has a certain legitimacy. There is a complete transcript of Barack Obama's speech in opposition to George Bush's impending and ultimately disastrous Gulf War II in David Remnick's 'The Bridge -The Life and Rise of Barack Obama.'
Germany, along with France, refused to become involved in Bush's 'ship of fools' coalition of the willing off to cause much death and destruction in search on non-existent weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
Not so that gang of Eastern European 'boneheads' who, almost to a country, jumped upon Bush's bandwagon and went off to Iraq in what was almost certainly an illegal action.
And just who supported this war on (non-existent) weapons of mass destruction, who made speeches in the House as Opposition leader supporting Bush's actions to the hilt?
Stephen Harper! That's who!
Now, as he struts about the deck of one of Canada's few remaining warships, sounding off about Putin's needless actions in the Ukraine, one has to wonder if Stephen Harper ever reflects on any of this.
Given the measure of the man, especially since he got his majority government, almost certainly not.
I have no particular love for Putin's homophobic semi-dictatorship, backed again to the hilt by a revived Russian Orthodox church.
However, the double standard here is deafening!
By re-labelling Ukraine’s civil war as a Russian invasion, all manner of sanctions are legitimized by the powers that be, including the USA.
In the meantime, in a rhyming of history, the Eastern European countries tremble as newly revived Russian military faces them across the border.
Putin is probably too shrewd to make any moves against Eastern Europe.
However, Harper's strutting about is a bit of a joke, don't you think?
Dennis Peacock
Clearwater, B.C.